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Nine Schools Competition s a nationwide annual magic tournament for the nine National Magic University Affiliated High Schools, and it is one of the biggest magic-related events in Japan. Its official name is "Nationwide Magic High School Athletics Competition". Every year, a roster of select students from the nine 'National Magic University Affiliated High Schools' from across the country meet, putting theirs and their schools' pride on the line. A huge audience is always expected, including not only general public, government officials and those interested in magic but also businesses, overseas companies, researchers and scouts. It is also one of the few stages that provides magic competition as entertainment. The Nine Schools Competition is said to be the greatest stage for Magic High School students to shine and its results are linked to the students' career paths. It is also one of the few major events to allow the general public to better understand and become invested in magic competitions, as well as to further society's acknowledgement of magic. Rules and RegulationsEdit The competition is divided into the Official and Newcomers' Divisions. Only 1st Year Students may participate in the Newcomers' Division while the Official Division has no restrictions. Each contestant may participate only in two contests and the maximum number of participants per contest is three from each school, with men and women calculated separately. Prior to AD 2095 Nine Schools Competition, the Newcomers' Division was not separated by gender but from the year 2095 on wards, both the Official and Newcomers' Division will be. In Year 2096, the rules changed again and allow students to only be in one competition and cannot participate in a second game unless it is Steeplechase Cross-Country. Beside the contestants, the Nine Schools Competition allows each school to bring 4 people as Tactical Advisers, but not every school takes advantage of this option. Each school is also allowed to bring 8 Technicians who are responsible for CAD maintenance. The CADs used at the Nine Schools Competition must be universally adaptable so only models that fit the criteria are allowed. However, there are no restriction on software. All CADs also have to be turned over to the Nine Schools Competition Committee for examination once. For Year 2095, both Official and Newcomers' Divisions require 10 men and women each, for a grand total of 40 excluding the tactical advisers and technicians. For Year 2096, the Official Division requires 12 men and women each while the Newcomers' Division requires 9 men and women each. A grand total of 42, excluding the Tactical Advisers and Technicians. IncidentsEdit Year 2095 - No Head Dragon is responsible for every accident that occurs. Three armed intruders try breaking into the Hotel for contestants, but Tatsuya disarms them and Mikihiko knocks them out. During the Females Official Division for the Battle Board event, Watanabe is injured after trying to catch a student from Seventh High School who was sabotaged and ended up accelerating out of control. Morisaki Shun and his team were critically injured when Battering Ram, a magic was used on the deserted building they were in causing them to get buried under rubble during the Men's Newcomers' Division Monolith Code event. During the Females Official Division Mirage Bat event, Kobayakawa's magic fails, causing her to fall. She is saved, but ends up being shocked by the experience. Tatsuya catches one of the Board Members trying to tamper with Miyuki's CAD by using Golden Electron Silkworms on it. Then Douglas Huang removes the limiter on a Generator and has it try attacking spectators at the Competition Arena. Members of the 101 Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion stop it from harming anybody. EventsEdit The contests in the Nine School Competition focus on the events in athletic magic contests that require more Magic Power. The events were changed every competition in the past, but in recent years the same contests are seen every year. Monolith CodeEdit Tatsuya, Leo and Mikihiko in Monolith Code. Expand slideshow1 of 2Add photo Monolith Code (秘碑解碼) is a men's only game. At the competition site, called a "Stage", magic is used to fight over the "Monolith", with each team having three players. The outcome is determined by splitting the monolith in the enemy encampment and transmitting a concealed code. Any attacks other than magic are forbidden. Breaking the monolith requires that it be struck with a special Non-systematic Magic. Due to the nature of the event, this game is the most popular among the Nine Schools Competition. 1 Mirage BatEdit Mirage Bat stadium. Expand slideshow2 of 3Add photo Mirage Bat (幻境摘星) or "Fairy Dance" is a women's only game. With the elaborate costumes and how the players fly around, they are often likened to fairies. Among players, this game is called "Mirage". Holographic spheres are projected in the air, and players must compete by using magic to rise into the air and hit the orbs with their sticks. Though this competition has the fewest number of games of all in the Nine Schools Competition, the play time is typically the longest. During the game, Players must continuously invoke magic to leap into the air. It is said the burden is similar to running a full marathon. Sometimes people called it "battle of Magical Girls". Speed ShootingEdit Speed shooting Mayumi competing in Speed Shooting Speed Shooting (精速射擊), also known as "Quick Draw", is a game where clay targets are shot into the designated space and destroyed by magic. One-hundred red and white targets are released and the players compete by destroying their colored targets. In the Preliminaries, players only compete to destroy as many targets as possible within a five-minute time limit. Beginning at the Quarter-finals, the scoring system is put into place as contestants compete against each other. Icicle Destruction / Ice Pillar BreakEdit Icicle Destruction / Ice Pillar Break Expand slideshow1 of 2Add photo Icicle Destruction (冰柱攻防) or "Ice Pillar Break" is a game where two players stand on a tower four meters in height, defending twelve pillars contained in twelve meter square area while attacking twelve pillars in the opposition's field. Players compete to destroy the opponent's pillars before their own are broken. There is no need to use the body, since players compete remotely with magic, so players may wear whatever they wish, with the only restriction being that "It Must Not Offend Public Order or Morals". It is said the Women's Pillar Break has become a fashion show in recent years. Also, it can be assumed that it is the only game where even Lethal Rank A magic can be used due to it not being a directly combative sport as mentioned by Fujibayashi, Kyouko. Crowd BallEdit Crowd ball Mayumi in Crowd Ball Crowd Ball (群球搶分) is a game where 6 cm diameter foam balls are shot into the competition area using compressed air. Players compete by using a racket or magic to force the balls to hit the opponent's court. One set lasts 3 minutes, and a ball is shot into the court, covered in a transparent box, every 20 seconds, leading to 9 balls being on the court simultaneously. Women have 3 sets per match while Men have 5 sets. Battle BoardEdit Battle board circuit Expand slideshow2 of 2Add photo Battle Board (沖浪競速), also referred to as "Surfing", is a game that originated as a method for training naval forces. Players receive a board similar to a surfing board and must complete three laps on an artificial channel 3 km in length by making full use of magic to propel them forward. Players compete for victory. According to the rules, use of magic to directly interfere with other players is forbidden, though you are allowed to use magic on the water to indirectly interfere. The Preliminaries consists of six races, four players each. Two Semi-Finals games are held with three contestants each. A playoff is held to determine third place, while the top Players from each Semi-finals race will compete one-on-one in the finals. It should be noted that on the anime, the flow of water within the course goes backwards or opposite the direction the players race which differentiates it with non-magic surfing (During Mitsui, Honoka's final race, the water visibly flows backward from the top of the last ramp with the other side flowing straight down into a calm stretch). This fact shows that the game not only requires the players to use their magic skills to outwit or interfere with their opponents, it also requires them to be able to constantly use magic to propel themselves forward. This year, the Nine Schools Competition will start on 5th August and end on the 15th August with the Opening party falls on the 3rd August. This means the competition schedule will last for 11 days, one more day compared to last year. The contests in the Nine School Competition focus on the events in athletic magic contests that require more Magic Power. The events were changed every competition in the past, but in recent years the same contests are seen every year until 2096. Speed Shooting, Crowd Ball and Battle Board are removed and replaced by the three following events: Rower and Gunner, Shield Down and Steeplechase Cross-Country. Icicle Destruction, Rower and Gunner and Shield Down are further divided into solo and pair events. Various procedures for the contests have also changed. Monolith CodeEdit Tatsuya, Leo and Mikihiko in Monolith Code. Expand slideshow1 of 2Add photo Monolith Code (秘碑解碼) remains the same as before. At the competition site, called a "Stage", magic is used to fight over the "Monolith", with each team having three players. The outcome is determined by splitting the monolith in the enemy encampment and transmitting a concealed code. Any attacks other than magic are forbidden. Breaking the monolith requires that it be struck with a special Non-Systematic Magic. Due to the nature of the event, this game is the most popular amongst the Nine Schools Competition. 1 Mirage BatEdit Expand slideshow1 of 2Add photo The event with the least changes in rules; Mirage Bat has 27 contestants with 3 from each High School. The initial fixed 4 competitors per set had changed to 3 rounds with 4 competitors and 3 rounds with 5 competitors. The set a competitor will participate in will be determined through lottery. With the introduction of Flying Type Magic, usage of sustained flight is restricted to one minute burst which means that competitors are required to land within one minute. Rower and GunnerEdit Further divided into solo and pair categories. In the pair category, one person acts as the 'rower' of an unmotorized boat along a water channel, and the other acts as the 'gunner', who will shoot down targets either on the banks of the channel or moving on the water channel itself. Both the time taken to reach the goal and the number of targets shot will determine the score. In the solo category, a single person acts as both the 'rower' and 'gunner'. This event was derived originally from USNA's naval training menu. Shield DownEdit Further divided into solo and pair categories. Participants holding shields will battle in an elevated arena. Winning conditions are either one of these: Destroy opponent's shield, Steal opponent's shield, Cause opponent to drop shield and unable to recover it for 5 seconds or more, Knock opponent out of the arena. A participant can use both physical (either with his body or the shield) and magic attacks on the opponent's shield but only magic to knock an opponent off the arena. Physical strikes on the opponent's body are not allowed. Steeplechase Cross-CountryEdit An obstacle course in the forest where participants compete by the time taken to clear it. Originally derived from infantry training menu. Obstacles can be natural or man-made. They can be automated gun emplacements or magic obstacles. Steeplechase is restricted to years 2 and 3 only. Icicle Destruction / Ice Pillar BreakEdit Further divided into solo and pair categories. Icicle Destruction / Ice Pillar Break Expand slideshow1 of 2Add photo Icicle Destruction ) or "Ice Pillar Break" is the same as the year before, where two players stand on a tower four meters in height, defending twelve pillars contained in twelve meter square area while attacking twelve pillars in the opposition's field. Players compete to destroy the opponent's pillars before their own are broken. There is no need to use the body, since Players compete remotely with magic, so Players may wear whatever they wish, with the only restriction being that "It Must Not Offend Public Order or Morals". It is said the Women's Pillar Break has become a fashion show in recent years. SECTION 2 Formally known as the National High School Magic Theory Thesis Competition, it is held on the last Sunday of October between the nine National Magic University Affiliated High Schools. Unlike the Nine Schools Competition, the Thesis Competition is not as conspicuous. While the Nine-Schools Competition requires a large body of 52 people to participate, the Thesis Competition requires only 3 people. The only required tasks within the Thesis Competition is to write a thesis and present it. If the Nine-Schools Competition was a practical contest, the Thesis Competition would be the literary complement. The location of the competition switches between Kyoto and Yokohama. The Thesis Competition is a platform to disseminate the research findings from Magic Theory and Magic Engineering at the High School level. It publicizes the work of High School students, and some lucky ones get their work known internationally. Also, representatives from the Department of Magic Research will be present, and any thesis recorded into the Magic Encyclopedia will be adopted by universities and corporations. Only individuals who are recommended by the National Magic University Affiliated High Schools, or has passed the thesis preliminaries in each school can attend. There is no precedent for someone presenting their thesis without being recommended. Although the rules open up the competition to all High School students, so far it has been only for Magic High Schools. The topic of the thesis is up to the teams in question, but it must not run counter to the public good or morality. To prevent this, all final drafts, materials, reports and blueprints must be turned over to the Magic Association ahead of time Participants / Participant SelectionEdit The participants for the Thesis Competition for First High were Ichihara Suzune, Isori Kei and Shiba Tatsuya. Kichijouji Shinkurou was participating as a team member for Third High. Location SettingEdit The location for the Thesis Competition in year 2095 was Yokohoma. The Opening Ceremony was conducted at 9 AM (a 30 min Ceremony). The official contest starting at 9:30 AM. Each team is allotted 30 minutes, with 10 minutes break in between. 4 team present before lunch, which is at 1 PM. The competition ends at 4:10 PM. Afterwards, there is evaluations and the Award Ceremony, and the event ended around 6 PM. First High's presentation was scheduled at 3 PM. 1 Topics for Thesis CompetitionEdit The topic for the Thesis Competition for First High was "Realization of a Gravity Control-Type Thermonuclear Fusion Reactor". The topic for the Thesis Competition for Second High was "Usage of Convergence-Type Magic to Observe and Utilize Dark Matter". The topic for the Thesis Competition for Fourth High was "Development of Magic Assistance Devices Capable of Molecular Rearrangement". The topic for the Thesis Competition for Fifth High was "The Control of Plate Tectonics and Gradual Extraction of Tectonic Force". Topics for Thesis CompetitionEdit The topic for the Thesis Competition for Second High was "The Principle of Mental Interference Magic and the Theory behind its Activation Sequence”. The Great Indochina War, also called the Vietnamese Conflict refers to a military conflict that occurred years before the beginning of the story, in which the Great Asian Alliance tried to conquer the entire Indochina peninsula. 2 Course of the WarEdit During the conflict, the South Vietnamese Army waged guerrilla warfare against the Great Asian Alliance with the help of the then Captain Kazama Harunobu, who ignored the JSDF high command's orders to secretly interfere with the Great Asian Alliance's advance, and openly intervened in the war. With the support of information analyst Saeki Hiromi back at JSDF GHQ, Kazama's guerrilla tactics helped in halting the Great Asian Alliance's advance in time for the USNA and the New Soviet Union to intervene and push back the Great Asian Alliance. 2 AftermathEdit While he was hailed as an expert in jungle warfare, for his insubordination, Kazama was shut out of promotion. Saeki, however, was showered with praises, and eventually obtained the rank of Major General, which she would use to promote Kazama to the rank of Major Among First through Third High, they are schools where only elites are accepted, right at the start of enrollment, the students are already divided into high achievers and low achievers. Currently they accept only 200 new students per year. Both Course 1 and 2 will have 100 students each and there are 4 classes of Course 1 students and 3 classes of Course 2 students (The Third High School terms them as "Specialized Course" and "Normal Course"). The difference between Course 1 and Course 2 students lies in the availability of instructors; if we take away the availability of a personal instructor, then the curriculum between the two courses are the same. While the Fourth to Ninth schools, each with a quota of a hundred students, provide instructors to all the students, the level of their instructors is a notch lower compared to those of the First to Third schools. Rules & Regulations on Use of Magic by StudentsEdit The use of magic off campus is tightly regulated by law. The mere possession of CAD off campus is not restricted, because though CADs are currently indispensable tools for magicians, but they are not essential for the use of magic (Magic can be used even without a CAD). Therefore, the law does not restrict the mere possession of a CAD. Students are required to deposit their CADs at the office before the start of classes and allowed to collect them when returning home. The only ones allowed to carry a CAD in the school are senior members of the student council and certain committee members. Using attack magic on others for any reason other than self-defense is not just a violation of school rules, it's a criminal offense! Students teaching each other isn't restricted, however, exercising or executing magic is prohibited (This is taught in 1st semester).1 School SymbolsEdit Nine Schools Competition Scoreboard First through Ninth High School symbols CurriculumEdit Even though various schools follow the curriculum guidelines set by the National University of Magic, there are also schools that have their own special characteristics. First and Second High School teach according to the international guidelines. The Third High School places emphasis on practical battle magic, and, in contrast, the Fourth High School places emphasis on a large number of highly complex manufacturing magic which are valuable in areas of magic engineering. Aside from the different focuses in the types of magic, there are also schools that specialize in magic usable in a particular environment. The Seventh High School teaches, separate from the normal curriculum, high level magic that has practical usability above water or seas, while the Eighth High School integrates practical outdoor lessons on magic useful in regions of extreme cold or mountainous regions where the living environments are extreme. While other schools may not have their own specialized curriculum, this should not lead one to believe that they are any less prestigious. First High School, in particular, is an upper-level, magic institution known to send the most graduates to the National University of Magic every year. At the same time, it is also an elite school that churns out the largest number of excellent Magicians. Nine Schools CompetitionEdit Main Article: Nine Schools Competition The official name of the event is the Nationwide Magic High School Athletics Competition, and as its name suggests, involves students from First through Ninth High School, hence its more commonly referred to name. It is a team competition involving fierce magic games, meant to fuel the aspirations of the students, with some schools even putting more emphasis towards the games than most prestigious sports schools. Competition events include Speed Shooting, Crowd Ball, Battle Board, Ice Pillars Break, Mirage Bat, and Monolith Code, six in total, with Monolith Code being a men's only event and Mirage Bat a women's only event. The outcomes of these events are often used to rank each school among the others. Depending on the school, if a club performed splendidly during the Nine Schools Competition, the the club’s budget and its members receive special treatment. Students with outstanding performance in the events would receive extra credit for their classes, and just being one of the official participants, netted students no homework during the course of the event, or even guaranteed straight A's. This not only applies to the participants, but to the students selected as engineers as well. After Scorched Halloween the Competition had certain events replaced by new ones that were related to training and testing students for the Military. The events that were removed are, Speed Shooting, Crowd Ball, and Battle Board. The events that replaced them are, Rower and Gunner, Shield Down, and Steeplechase Cross-Country. The event regularly draws a large and diverse crowd of spectators, including government officials, corporate representatives from domestic and foreign businesses, researchers, and scouts, as well as those simply interested in magic. Therefore, it is the greatest stage for Magic High School students to shine. Thesis CompetitionEdit Main Article: Thesis Competition Seen as the literary complement to the Nine Schools Competition, the Thesis Competition is where schools try to regain lost honor from the Nine Schools Competition. Although not as well known as the Nine Schools Competition, the Thesis Competition is seen as just as important. Only three participants are required, as compared to the over fifty in the Nine Schools Competition. The participants only need to write a thesis and present a model. If the thesis is good enough, the work will be published, and lucky ones get their thesis known internationally. Participation requires a recommendation from a magic high school, or the passing of a thesis preliminary, but no one has ever participated without being recommended. Of course, the topic of research must be for the good of the country, any topic that can be seen as malicious is censored.